Virtual Art Picnic - Creative Every Day

Picnic Collage, Recycling

mixed media on 12" by 12" canvas board

made during Tele-Conference - Virtual Art Picnic

sponsored by Creative Every Day Blog

hosted by Leah Piken Kolidas

Fun afternoon! Just what I needed - in fact, probably need one everyday! The host, Leah, joined a group of women together by a tele-conference. Leah has a smooth, soothing smokey voice that instantly inspires comfort. She tell us that today we are to just "do" without any fear of failure and without the need to create our masterpiece.

Leah then goes through a short meditation session to get ourselves center for the task at hand. I light a candle and lots of good quality art-lamps. I have been gathering clippings from the recycling box all morning. I look for old crafty things like raffia, rubber stamps, glue sticks, ribbon and even glitter (couldn't find glitter). I'm watching the clock for two hours ahead, but still manage to arrive four minutes late!

The conference lasts two hours. The first 30 minutes we are on the phone together. Then we work alone for the next hour and finally return together to share what we have done. One woman used Pink as her theme, inspiring me to add a lot of pink - mostly because it just looked good on the black background. Another woman worked on a project she had set aside. Everyone was inventive and enthusiastic about the project. But my favorite of all was the location of one of the participates; she was in the backseat as her husband drove home from a family reunion. I can't imagine having supplies enough to work in the car, but she did say it was a favorite travel method for her, so I assume she was experienced in what supplies would be needed. Little did she know she is in the company of my friend, artist Dan Lacey, who recently blogged with pictures about painting in the car while his wife drove, another favorite place for him to paint!

Sometimes I'd like to have a husband, I wonder, would mine drive me around so I could paint? My late husband was not known for his driving skills - on land, his skill was on the water and there he was a Master Chief! But mostly, I am lonely. Companionship is a thing to be treasured coming easily to some and briefly to others.

You never know what you're going to get in this life, so don't miss a thing!

I'd like to join another VAP, Leah hosts them every few months. It was a relaxing "just-for-me" time. Thank you Leah and the other participants for a lovely afternoon!

ADDENDUM: 3/30/11 I just got a new comment for "credit card casino" which prompted me to reread this post.

Oh my, I have let so much slip by. I need to renew, long-term thinking, Forward-thinking. Get up Beckie, it's not too late, but the sun is lowering closer to the horizon -

Thank God I love the night!